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2023.08.20 17:00 GMT+8

Russia's Luna-25 has smashed into the moon

Updated 2023.08.21 08:37 GMT+8
CGTN

A Soyuz-2.1b rocket carrying the Luna-25 spacecraft blasts off from the launch pad at the Vostochny cosmodrome, August 11, 2023. /CFP

Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft crashed into the moon after it spun into uncontrolled orbit, Russia's space corporation Roscosmos said on Sunday.

The space agency said it lost contact with the craft at 11:57 GMT on Saturday after a problem occurred as the craft was shunted into pre-landing orbit. A soft landing had been planned for Monday.

"The apparatus moved into an unpredictable orbit and ceased to exist as a result of a collision with the surface of the moon," Roskosmos said in a statement.

It said a special inter-departmental commission had been formed to investigate the reasons behind the loss of the Luna-25 craft.

Read more: Russia's Luna-25 spacecraft suffers technical glitch in pre-landing operation

Source(s): Reuters
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